Dump-car construction and door-locking mechanism therefor



Aug., )14, w23;

A. CAMPBELL.

DUMP GAR CONSTRUCTION AND DOOR LOCKING MECHANISM THEHEFOR Filed Dec. lO 1921 Aug., M, w23. A. CAMPBELL DUMP CAR CONSTRUCTION AND DOOR LOCKING MECHANISM THEREFOH fggle (Kanga ,gil

Patented Ang.. 141, 1923.

"annoso stares letal/4t Parent ortica,

ARG-YLT@ CAMPBELL, F @Film1-1GO, ILLI'NUIS,

-separaten-'r contraria,

SSGNOR T0 ENTERPRCSE RAILWAY 0F GHJICAGO, JILLINOXS, A CORFORATION 0F IIL'LNIS.

Application filed December 10, 1921. Serial No. 521,293.

To all `whom it may concern.'

Be it known that l, A nernn CAMPBELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of llllinois, have invented a certain new and usei'ul 1m rovement in Dump-Car Construction and oor-Locking Mechanism Therefor, ot which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,

forming a part oi this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in dump car 'construction and door locking mechanism therefor.

i @ne object of the invention is to provide a simple,- ecient and comparatively inexpensive locking arrangement for dump car doors.

Another object of the invention is to provide a combined door locking bar and rein- :torcing brace for sheet metal flanged doors. Another object of the invention is to provide certain reinforcements for a car construction at points adjacent the door opening to; overcome weaknesses heretofore encountered at such points, certain of said reintorcing parts being also employed as a part of the door locking means.

lin the drawings forming a part of this zo specilication, Figure 1 is a broken side elevational view of a portion of a dump car oi' the so-called W-type showing my improveine-nts in connection therewith. Figure 2 is a broken, sectional view taken transversely `5 of the car and corresponding substantially with the broken section line 2 2 of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a vertical, sectional view taken lengthwise of the car and corresponding substantially to the section line 3 3 of F igo ure 2. And Figure 4 is a plan view of the locking bar, detached.

lln said drawings, 10 denotes one oi the side walls of the car, 11 one of the side stakes, 12 one of the channels employed to 5 make up the girder center sill of well known form and 13 a longitudinally extending reintorcing angle for the side wall 10 of the car.

As customary in the W type of car, a cen- .tral transversely extending ridge is formed as by the ridge sheet 14, it being understoody that there are four hoppers in the car, two on each side of the center sill and arranged in pairs transversely or the car. Fach such hopper is defined by a sloping bottom hopper sheet 15, a vertical inner side hopper sheet 16, and an outer side hopper sheet- 17, the latter sloping inwardly toward the longitudi/nal center line of the car. Said sheets are /riijeted` to tired parts of the car and to eva/dh ther and, as will be obvious, intersect or merge at the lower portion of the dis` char e opening at corners, one of which is indicated at 18 in Figure 1. Heretofore,

considerable difficulty has been experienced in maintaining said corner cars, due to the fact that t e sheet metal is necessarily bent and more or less stretched in the bending operation, thus weakening the sheet metal and allowing the same to tear or more easily corrode than at other parts of the sheets which are not subject to deformation. One of the objects of my invention, as heretofore stated, is to reinforce cars at these points of weakness, .so as to minimize the cost of maintenance.

Fach discharge opening, in the type of car shown in the drawing, is adapted to be closed b a sheet metal door 19 which is preferably flanged all around its edges so as to provide a top horizontall extending flange 20, side flanges 21-21 an a free edge Harige 22. The latter is extended inwardly from the main plane of the door, as best shown in Figures 1 and 2, in order to provide a better seal whereas the other flanges 20 and 21 are extended perpendicularly outwardly from the main plane of the door, as customary. Said door 19 is pivotally attached bv suitable hinge butts 23-23 to a combin reinforcing brace and hinge butt 24 which is secured to the underside of the ortions oi dump ridge sheet 14 adjacent the upper edge of the. A

discharge opening. Said combined brace and hinge butt 24 preferably lextends from the channel sill 12 to the outer side of the car whe-re it is formed with suitable llanges 25 iitting over the outer side hopper sheet 17 and also over the end of the line of meeting of the door and ridge sheet 14 'soas to brace and reinforce these corner portions of the sheet metal structure and prevent tearing or corroding thereof, all as more fully described and claimed in/r/ny co-pending application, Serial No. 521,292 Filed December 10, 1921. rllhe hopper bottom sheet 15 is ordinarily reinforced by an angle iron such as indicated at 26 in Figures 1 and 2, said hereinafter described, said features are reversed in position on account of the opposite directions of swing of the end portions of the bar C. A detailed description of one of said bracket castings A or B will be sufficient for an understanding of the invention.

Referring now more specifically to the bracket casting A, which is shown on the outer side of the car, it will be noted that the same is formed with a flanged section 27 fitting against and rivetedvto the inclined `side hopper sheet 17, said flanged section 27 extending from a point flush with the under Side of the bottom sheets 15 upwardly and parallel to the edge of the side hopper sheet 17. At the bottom of the flanged section 27 the bracket casting A is provided with an outwardly extended flange 28 riveted to one of the flanges of the correspondingly extended end ofz the angle iron 26 so that the latter is securely tied with the side hopper sheet 17, thus reinforcing the corner and preventing the bottom sheet 15 from tearing out, under load, from the side hopper sheet 17.

The bracket casting A is also provided near the bottom thereof with a transversely extending flange 29 as best indicated in Figure 2 which fits under and is riveted to the upper flange 30 of the angle iron 26. The casting A is provided with an additional flange 3l extending at right angles to the flange 29, which flange 31 is riveted to the other flange 32 of the angle iron 26.

Extended in a downwardly inclined direction from the main fiange section 27, the casting A is provided with a hollow channelshaped sect1on 33 located outside of the plane of the side hopper sheet 17 and extending beyond the free edge of said sheet 17 so as to overlap the corresponding edge flange 21 of the door. From the channel section 33 is extended a top arm 34 and a lower arm 35, the latter having an upstanding lug 36 which is slightly rounded on its inner side as indicated at 37 and providing a square shoulder 38 arranged parallel to the main plane of the door 19, when the latter is in closed position. rlhe upper arm 34 is formed on its under side with a cam guiding surface 138 opposite the lug 36 for the purpose hereinafter described. `With the construction .de-

in wit an entrance opening defined by the lug 36 and the cam guiding edge 138, to accommodate the end of the latch bar C, the latter engaging behind the shoulder 38.

While the bracket casting A has been described in detail, it will be observed that the other bracket casting B, shown best in Figure 3, is substantially identical, exceptithat the arms and lugs 34, 35 and 36 are reversed. The locking bar C, preferably in the form of a suitable casting', consists of a longitudinally extending main section 39 with a centrally disposed hub 40, two inwardly extending bearing lugs or enlargements 41-41 on opposite sides of the center, and somewhat reduced ends 42-42. The ends 42 extend beyond the side edges of the door and just clear the edges of the door side flanges 21-21, which is made possible on account of the hub 40 which serves to space the main section 39 of the bar away from the main plane of the door.` The locking bar C is pivotally attached at substantially its central point to the door by means of a suitable pivot pin 43 extended through the hub and mounted in a suitable bearing bracket 44 riveted to the door. By providing the bearing lugs or enlargements 41, it will be seen that thelocking bar C has three points of bearing contact with the door, that is, at the is oscillatable with respect to the bracket 44 a limited distance, the amount being'determined by a flange 45 on the bracket 44 so spaced as to allow the bar C to swing from behind the shoulders 38 on the bracket castings A and B and be disengaged therefrom but to prevent the bar C from swinging to an extreme position. The limiting stops formed by said fiange 45 also serve to insure positioning of the ends of the b-ar C so as to engage the cam guiding edges 138 of the corner bracket castings when the door is swung to closed position, as will be understood.

To hold the locking bar C in its operative closedposition, a cam plate 46 is employed, the same being pivotally mounted as indicated at 47 on a suitable plate 48, the latter being riveted to the under side of the door 19.

From the preceding description, it will be seen that the bracket castings A and B not only serve to securely tie together the various hopper sheets at the corner points mentioned and to reinforce the same but also function as parts of the deer locking mechanism, thus reducingthe number of parts rel quired and the cost of manufacture and application.

As .will be understood by those skilled in the art, the invention may be applied to various other types of cars than the one shown, and many changes made in the details of construction and arrangement of parts without departing lfrom the spirit of the invention. All changes and modifications are contemplated that come within the scope of the claims appended'hereto.

ll claim:

l. In a car having a discharge opening defined by sheets extending in diderent planes and forming a corner; the combination with a reinforcing member secured to said sheets at said corner, said member having flanged portions extending in corresponding (liderent planes and overlying the sheets; of a pivotally mounted door; and cooperable means on the door and said member for locking' the door in closed position. 2. lln a car having a discharge opening defined by sheets extending in different planes and forming a corner; the combination with a reinforcing member of commercial shape extending lengthwise of the free edge of one of said sheets and secured thereto; of a reinforcing corner casting secured'directly to a Harige of said member and having a portion thereof overlying and secured to the adjacent corner-forming sheet, to thereby tie together the corner-forming sheets.

3. ln a car having a discharge opening defined by sheets extendin in different planes andforming a corner; tlgie combination with an angle iron extending lengthwise of the free edge of one of said sheets and secured thereto; of a reinforcing corner casting secured directly to a flange of said angle iron and having a portion thereof overlying and secured to the adjacent corner-forming sheet to thereby tie together the' corner-forming sheets.

1i. ln a car having a discharge opening defined by sheets extendin in dlfferent planes and forming a corner; the combination with a reinforcing member of commercial shape extending lengthwise of the free edge of one of said sheets and secured thereto; of a reinforcing corner casting secured kto said member and having a portion thereof overlying and secured to the adjacent cornerforming sheet, t thereby tie together the corner-forming sheets; a pivotally mounted door; and cooperable means on the door and corner casting for locking the door in 'closed position.

5. lin a car havinga discharge opening and a pivoted, door flanged along its side edges, the combination with a bracket member ser cured to a fixed part of the car adjacent said discharge opening and the free edge of the door when the latter is in closed position;

overlying and secured said bracket member having a shoulderforming recess located outwardly beyond the adjacent door '.dange when the door is in closed position; of a locking bar pivotally mounted on'the door to swing in a plane parallel to the main plane of the door, said bar having an end thereof cooperable with said bracket to engage behind said shoulder thereon to thereby lock the door in closed position, said bar end being spaced from the main plane of the door, to thereby clear the door flange.

6. lin a car having a discharge opening and a pivoted door, the combination with a bracket member secured to fixed portions of the car adjacent the discharge opening vand the free edge of the door when the latter is in closed position,

said member having a recess therein with an entrance opening thereto, said member having a cam guiding edge on one side of said entrance opening and an arm providing a shoulder on the other side of said opening; of a locking bar pivotally mounted on the door, said bar having an' end thereof cooperable with said l shoulder and adapted to be cam-guided through said entrance qopening.

7. lin carpconstruction having a discharge opening, the combination with a pivotally mounted sheet metal door, having the side edges thereof flanged outwardly from the main plane of the door; of a locking bar pivotally attached intermediate its ends to the door and having the main portion there; of spaced outwardly in a plane clear of said door side anges, said bar having bearing lugs thereon engageable with the main portion of the door at points between said side flanges.

8. lin a car construction, the combination with a discharge hopper defined by a bottom hopper sheet and side hopper sheets rigidly united and forming corners at the lower portions of the discharge opening; of a pivotally mounted door adapted to close the discharge opening; ,reinforcing corner bracket castings at each of said corners, each of said castings having danged sections to respective adjacent portions of the hopper bottom sheet and corresponding side hopper sheet; and means for locking the door in closed position.

9. lin car construction, the combination with a discharge hopper defined by a bottom hopper sheet and side hopper sheets rigidly united and forming 'corners at the lower portions of the discharge opening; of a pivotally mounted door adapted to close the hopper opening; reinforcing corner bracket castings at each of said corners, each of said castings having Hanged sections overlying and secured to respective adjacent portions of the hopper bottom' sheet and Vcorresponding side hopper sheet; and means for locking t e door in .closed position, said means comprising fixed shoulders formed on said brackets and a locking bar pivotally mounted on the door.

10. As an article of manufacture, a combined corner brace and door locking element, said element having flanged sections eX- tending in different planes and adapted to be secured to correspondingly disposed sheets of a car, said element having also an integrally formed locking shoulder thereon with Which is adapted to cooperate a pivoted locking bar. 11. In a hopper car having a hopper defined in part by a sloping hopper bottom sheet and a side hopper sheet, the planes of `said sheets intersecting at an angle and. both sheets having free edges in part defining the discharge opening, said car having also a hopper door pivoted along its upper edge, a corner brace for said bottom and side sheets, said brace having integral portions overlapping adjacent portions of the bottom and side sheets and extending lengthwise of the free edges thereof, said overlapping portions being arranged to be rigidly united with the respective hopper bottom and side sheets.

In Witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 30th day of November 1921.

I ARGYLE CAMPBELL. IVitnesses:

UNA C. GRIGSBY,

ANN BAKER; 

